Entertainment

Professional baseball fans in Watertown rejoice. After nearly 20 years, the sport has returned to the city. The Watertown Bucks are an independent pro team with players from all over the country. The team may not be affiliated with a major league team, but the players could still be picked up by one. In Watertown, fans are overjoyed to have a baseball team they can call their own again.

It’s a common procedure at the state fair: step right up and try to win a prize at one of the midway’s many carnival games.

Pop a balloon with a dart; sink a basketball shot; hook a ring around a bottle. Do so, and spend the rest of a day at the fair slinging an oversized plush gorilla over the shoulder, or carrying a stuffed monkey under an arm.

Every year there are new attractions or cosmetic changes at the New York State Fair in Geddes. This year, when the fair gates open Thursday, visitors will see some of the most dramatic differences in decades.

It’s the biggest change at the fair in 73 years, says Acting Fair Director Troy Waffner. An all new midway, with long-time show operator James E. Strates out and Michigan-based Wade Shows in.

Just about six months ago, Gov. Andrew Cuomo came to central New York to announce that the state would chip in $30 million for a multi-million dollar plan to revitalize the western lakeshore of Onondaga Lake, including the village of Solvay. Today, Onondaga County is ready to share with the public detailed plans about what this development entails.

There will be skating at the Meachem Ice Rink in Syracuse’s Valley neighborhood starting in October.

The rink closed earlier this year after a series of mechanical problems made it impossible to make ice. State Sen. Dave Valesky and Assemblyman Bill Magnarelli combined forces to get more than $450,000 from the state’s capital budget to pay for installation of an ice mat.

Syracuse Mayor Stephanie Miner says it is the latest innovation in the ice rink world.

On February 9, 1964, The Beatles took America by storm, making their first appearance on the Ed Sullivan show. Fifty years later, we examine why the group was so innovative. Beyond reshaping music, they changed business, art, Hollywood, fashion, and culture.

In 2004, a musician with roots in central and northern New York came up with an idea for a fundraiser to help preserve the St. Lawrence River. Every Fourth of July weekend since then, singer-songwriter Jay Nash has led a group of musicians in the "Rock for the River" concert in Clayton, which benefits the non-profit group "Save the River." The events have been so popular, this year they've added another concert on Labor Day weekend. WRVO's Catherine Loper recently spoke with Nash about how his passions for the river and music intersect.

If you listen to Wait, Wait... Don't Tell Me! on WRVO each Saturday morning, you probably know that tomorrow night… Peter Sagal, Carl Kasell and the rest of the Wait, Wait... crew will beam their show live to movie theaters across the country. It’s the first time the show has been broadcast live across the country. WRVO’s Mark Lavonier had the chance to talk to Peter Sagal and asked him how the live show came about.

Michel Martin is host of NPR's Tell Me More program, which is celebrating its fifth anniversary on the air. In this conversation, she tells how the show has evolved in its approach toward race, ethnicity, and diversity; what areas she'd like to see the show expand into in the future; the difference that radio can make in reporting a story and talking with people; and how the experience of doing the show has affected her.